Tasting - Dr. Loosen Riesling

Riesling label

Name: Dr. Loosen Riesling

Variety: Riesling

Region: Mosel

Country: Germany

Year: 2021

Price: $11

Online Tasting Notes: "Dr. Loosen L. Bros Riesling 2021 is a white wine with delicate fruity aromas on the nose with notes of citrus, apricot, and mineral nuances. The palate is smooth and refreshing." [Decantalo.com]

Wine Folly Notes: I smelled and tasted the apple and citrus and understand the beeswax note since it was quite sweet, but I absolutely did not get any hint of petroleum. I did not pair this wine with any of the suggested meats, but will certainly look to try some in the future as I thoroughly enjoyed this bottle. [WineFolly.com]

My Notes: This week, my group tried both this Riesling and a Piemonte blend (coming to the blog next week) while enjoying the film Somm: Into the Bottle. On the nose, I picked up distinct apple and citrus aromas, leaning toward an orange zest as the origin of the citrus. Wine Folly cites lime in a typical Riesling, so I was probably off there. On first taste, I noted the apple and citrus flavors with a hint of raspberry. This bottle is also quite sweet. My friend brought a pack of Monterey jack and colby cheese cubes, so naturally we all tried the wine with both. The colby and Riesling was a decent, neutral pairing, but the Monterey jack held back the wine's sweetness and helped the other flavors to shine.

Our tasting group this week

Tasting - Magistrate Merlot

Merlot label

Name: Magistrate Merlot

Variety: Merlot

Region: Paso Robles, California

Country: USA

Year: 2020

Price: $12

Label Tasting Notes: "Decadent flavors of ripe cherry and rich chocolate are accented by nuances of vanilla and spice. A delicate fruit acidity integrated with the natural sweetness of exceptional grapes yields an iconic Merlot of complexity and elegance."

Wine Folly Notes: I got the cherry, and this bottle is from a warmer region in California, so although it was dry, it was also quite fruity. I did not get any chocolate, vanilla, or plum notes. [WineFolly.com]

My Notes: I tried this wine with some friends at the same time as the Tortoise Creek Zinfandel a few weeks ago. I found that it had a light, fruity smell, but a much fuller body with higher tannins than the Zinfandel. I tasted some cherry, but not much else.

I did not pair this with food.

Our tasting group

Wine and Cheese Pairing #1

For our first cheese pairing, we chose a variety of cheeses with different characteristics and paired wines with them as seen online. 

Our selections

Ava Grace Sauvignon
Blanc (2021)

We chose to pair goat cheese with Ava Grace Sauvignon Blanc. By itself, the wine was acidic with a grapefruit taste. It was pleasant by itself, but much better with the goat cheese. The cheese's sweetness augmented the wine; both were extremely good when taken together.

Free Reign Rose

Next, we paired Havarti with Free Reign Rose. I cannot find which varieties were in this particular Rose. By itself, the Rose was well-balanced with some hints of berries, maybe raspberry or strawberry, The Havarti brought out the wine's full, bolder flavor and I did not discern any specific changes to the flavor other than it turned out to be a great pairing.

Cook's California
Champagne

We ended with a classic pairing of sparkling wine and brie. We are broke college students, so we couldn't go for true Champagne but settled for California Champagne. The wine had a pear aroma and tasted of apple and citrus, although my group had a small argument over whether the citrus flavor was from orange or lemon. The creaminess of the brie worked well with the wine, but there was nothing special to report from this pairing. We also tried the wine with the goat cheese and found that its sweetness also added a lot, and I liked this pairing better than the brie.

Our wine and cheese group (taken a few nights later)

Drink this Now Blog #1

For our first Drink This Now lesson experience, my group chose to follow lesson 1. This lesson had us choose a fairly big and bold red wine to see how it changes between opening and sitting for a couple of hours. We also tried the wine with cheese and meat (separately) to see how food can affect the wine, and vice versa.

Arbos Sangiovese
(2019)

Step 1: Drink this now! This step was fairly straightforward: open the wine and drink it, then jot down some notes. One of my tasting groupmates chose the wine and pairings for this lesson, and he chose well! He got an Arbos Sangiovese (2019) from Tuscany, Italy. At about $14/bottle, it turned out to be a solid choice for the lesson (as I will explain over the next few steps). Upon pouring a glass, I did a standard "sniff and swirl" and got notes of raspberry or cherry with oak, suggesting the wine was aged in a barrel. On initial tasting, I noted high tannins and a very bold and oaky flavor.

Step 2: Let it sit, then try it again. More specifically, let it sit for two hours and try it again. We actually did this step last since our group could only schedule about two hours to try this lesson, so my observations may be slightly skewed, but I found that the wine was sweeter with a mild burst of new flavors due to some of the tannins falling away. I could not put a label on any of the flavors, but I really enjoyed the wine after letting it sit.

Sangiovese with Parmesan
and salami

Step 3: Try it with a hard Italian cheese. My groupmate chose to pair the wine with Parmesan, so we sliced up a wedge of it and each took turns trying it with the Sangiovese. I found that the high fat in the cheese offset the acids in the wine, bringing out more of the fruitiness despite not allowing the wine to sit for long.

Step 4: Try it with meat. My groupmate got a pack of various salamis to try with the wine, and I'm not sure which salami I picked up, but I really liked how the slight spice brought out some of the wine's sweetness.

Step 5: Let it sit for several more hours, then try it again. Unfortunately, we did not have time to see this step through to completion. As stated earlier, we only had about two hours to work through the lesson, so we could only do the first four steps.

This lesson certainly highlighted how pairing food and wine can change the feel and taste of both, especially for a bolder red wine. It also demonstrated why bolder red wines should be allowed to sit for a few hours.

Group picture! (Taken a few days later)

Dinner - Caprese Sandwiches

For our first wine dinner, my group decided to have a nice, light meal with three courses: a cucumber and lettuce salad with Italian vinaigrette, Caprese sandwiches, and lemon bars as dessert. This was actually supposed to be a lunch, but we had a scheduling snafu after buying all the ingredients, so we ended up having it for dinner in the end!

Our dinner! Featuring a salad,
Caprese sandwiches, lemon bars,
and three delicious wines!

  

Franciscan Estate
Sauvignon Blanc
(2021)

Starting with the first course, we paired a Franciscan Estate Sauvignon Blanc (2021). It had light apple and lime aromas and tasted well-balanced with a clear lime or citrus on the tongue.

We didn't note anything special when paired with the salad, but we liked how the light wine complemented the vinaigrette. It was a fairly neutral pairing but worked well.

Kim Crawford
Rose (2021)

Next, we paired the Caprese sandwiched with a dry Rose from New Zealand. Online sources pin the Rose blend as containing white Zinfandel, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, and Chardonnay. By itself, I noted a watermelon aroma with a light and sweet finish including a berry taste and a dry aftertaste. The sandwich's salty pesto and acidic tomato brought out the wine's true flavor and actually made the wine sweeter. The food benefitted from the pairing as well, finding its flavor amidst the wine's dry finish.

Hess Select
Chardonnay
(2019)

Finally, we paired a delightful Chardonnay with lemon bars for dessert. I smelled citrus and some berries and tasted the citrus, oak, and vanilla listed on the wine's label. With the lemon bar, both the dish and the wine brought out each other's acid, causing a bit more sour mouthfeel. However, I kind of liked it and felt it was a neutral pairing.

Our wine dinner group!

Tasting - Roscato Rosé Dolce

Rosé label

Name: Roscato Rosé Dolce

Variety: Blend of Pinot Noir, Croatina, and Taroldego

Region: Northern Italy

Country: Italy

Year: NV

Price: $12

Label Tasting Notes: "This charming wine exalts fresh notes of strawberry and raspberry combined with a touch of sweetness."

Wine Folly Notes: This bottle certainly had the strawberry, as noted on the label, and maybe a little bit of honeydew. I didn't get any of the other flavors, and certainly not the citrus zest as this was more of a dessert wine. This is a blended rosé, as opposed to a bled rosé, and I really liked the variety of notes present. [WineFolly.com]

My Notes: I bought this wine for Valentine's Day to pair with dessert. After a nice dinner, we had some friends over (one friend pictured below with us), and make cookies and brownies to pair with the wine. By itself, I tasted the strawberry and definitely felt the sweetness, but the desserts brought out more of the sweetness and flavor of the wine.

Our tasting group

Tasting - Estancia Chardonnay

Chardonnay label

Name: Estancia Chardonnay

Variety: Chardonnay

Region: California

Country: USA

Year: 2021

Price: $11

Online Tasting Notes: "Rich gold in color, this expressive Chardonnay opens with tropical aromas of pineapple and guava highlighted with toasted oak and caramel. The palate is layered with hints of green apple and a touch of honey. This is a full-bodied wine with a lingering creaminess." [Wine.com]

Wine Folly Notes: I recognized the pineapple and yellow apple in the wine, and definitely got the buttery component, which makes sense as it is a California Chardonnay. I served it chilled, which turned out well, but did not keep it in a cellar for 5-10 years as suggested since I had a week to taste it before this blog was due. Maybe next time. [WineFolly.com]

Food!

My Notes: I really liked this wine - it was my first Chardonnay (more to come soon!), and I had it on a special occasion: my 16-month celebration with my girlfriend! We also had it a few days later, which is when we took the picture below, hence the extra person in the photo. It had a very smooth, buttery mouthfeel, which translated into a great aftertaste. The body of the wine also presented a pleasant apple flavor. I paired this wine with Boston Sail Loft clam chowder and roasted vegetables, pictured on the right. The buttery wine paired really well with the salty seafood and balanced the spice from the roasted veggies (I added some red pepper to them).

Our tasting group this week

Tasting - Tortoise Creek Zinfandel

Name: Tortoise Creek Zinfandel

Variety: Zinfandel

Region: Lodi California

Country: USA

Year: 2019

Price: $13

Online Tasting Notes: "Deep color with rich spicy aromas of wild dark berries and plums. It is round rich and bursting with flavor." [TotalWine]

Wine Folly Notes: I definitely got the strawberry and cinnamon flavors - this was a particularly sweet variety. I did not decant nor serve slightly chilled, so that is something I will try next time. [WineFolly.com]

My Notes: This was a delightful wine to try! It was my first true red, and I was expecting big, bold, tannic flavor, but was delightfully surprised with the sweetness. I got strong hints of strawberry and a little bit of black or raspberry. I paired this with homemade ravioli in red sauce that I helped my friend make, but don't have pictures of it.